MONDAY may be the much-trumpeted day when Wales becomes non-smoking - but some pubs have found ways to soften the blow.

Landlords have been spending tens of thousands of pounds on luxury outdoor shelters ahead of the April 2 deadline.

Among the big spenders is the Glenbrook Inn in Barry, where owners have forked out £20,000 for a luxurious shelter, which is even going to be fitted with a giant plasma screen TV.

And the Old Arcade in Cardiff city centre, which had no outdoor space, has finished a £200,000 refurbishment to knock a hole in the roof to make a special smokers' courtyard INSIDE the pub.

Another pub in Rumney, Cardiff, has created a smoking shelter almost as big as the pub itself in a £60,000 refurbishment.

Licensees say they want to make punters as comfortable as possible come Monday - but furious anti-smoking campaigners called the shelters excessive and said they undermined the ban.

Arthur O'Leary, landlord at the Glenbrook for more than 25 years, said: "More than half of the people who come to our pub are smokers so it was important that we had somewhere they would be happy to use.

"It's a big chunk out of our budget but we definitely think it's worth it. A lot of pubs are putting up canopies and things like that and I just think they will be too flimsy to last.

"We wanted something that would be permanent and also comfortable for people to use.

"In fact, we're just about to put a plasma screen in the shelter."

Mr O' Leary has also installed indoor heaters and lighting.

His design inspiration came after several visits to Scotland and Ireland, where a smoking ban is already in place.

And the 62-year-old is certain the new laws will be good for business.

"Putting up the shelter will hopefully attract different types of people as we will have the pub as a non-smoking area but there will also be a nice place for people to smoke," he said.

The pub is set to hold a "smoke-in" on Sunday - the last day before the ban - where hundreds of ash trays will substitute bottles of wine as prizes in a pub quiz.

Regular of more than 25 years John Nicholson, 65, praised the pub for providing "amazing" facilities.

"I would prefer to stay by the bar but the new facilities here are fantastic, really nice," he said.

"I'll definitely be going out there to use them from Monday. It's a lovely area."

Peter Hufton at the Monkstone Inn in Newport Road, Cardiff, reckons he has the best shelter of all.

The 47-year-old built an outdoor shelter almost as big as the pub itself as part of a £60,000 refurbishment.

"We had a mini-refurb 18 months ago and because we knew the smoking ban was coming we decided to create an outdoor area which we could use for dining and at the same time have an area for smokers," he said.

"It's half smoking, half non-smoking so it's not just for smokers but it's a big space with heaters so it should be a comfortable place for people to smoke.

"It's probably the best smoking shelter in Britain."

Non-smoking regular of more than 30 years Dave Prichard, 66, said: "The shelter is serving a dual purpose really.

"Non-smokers can sit outside with a wonderful view of the channel and have lunch but smokers will be able to use it when the ban comes in.

"Smokers have to be able to go somewhere and it's great that this shelter has more than one purpose."

Today, anti-smoking campaigners hit back at the big spenders, saying their action would undermine the law.

Amanda Sandford, research manager for anti-smoking campaign group Ash, said: "I think it could be counter-productive to spend huge amounts of money on providing smoking shelters because certainly, in the long run, there's probably going to be little need for it as people get used to not being able to smoke. If these shelters cover a large area and have TV screens in a way it is going to undermine the law because the whole point is that we protect people and stop people breathing in second- hand smoke. It does seem to be excessive.

"I think to have some sort of shelter is fair enough but I don't think it's necessary or desirable to go to great expense and provide very big shelters."

Both Cardiff council and the Welsh Assembly Government said there was no requirement under the new laws to provide a shelter but if pubs were considering building one they needed planning permission and it would need to comply with regulations that say it must be 50 per cent open-air.